


Tim's Curry

by VathySkotadi



Category: VA-11 Hall-A (Video Game)
Genre: Curry, Gen, Light-Hearted, On The Rocks - Va-11 Hall-A Zine, Post-Canon, Rain
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-07
Updated: 2021-02-07
Packaged: 2021-03-12 05:13:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,315
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29255025
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/VathySkotadi/pseuds/VathySkotadi
Summary: It's a rainy day in Glitch City, and business is slow, but Tim still gets to have a chat with his two favourite customers.
Kudos: 4





	Tim's Curry

The mostly starless night had fallen upon Glitch City not long ago, which only meant one thing for Tim: Business was about to pick up. The day had been a rather slow one, thanks to the nearly toxic rain, but it had dwindled during the past hour and now it was barely noticeable. He had been preparing all the ingredients needed for his many types of curry, but it was mostly to distract himself from the boredom, as he usually did before opening. It was such a shame. It was a cloudy, depressing day, so why would you not have some curry to lift your spirits?

Then again, most days were depressing in this city.

He finished his preparations and exited his kitchen. His bar wasn’t big—he was, after all, only one person—but it was certainly homely. The walls were painted a soft orange, and the warm lights hanging from the ceiling gave the place an old feel to fight against the sterile nature of modern society. The bar stools and a couple of tables were the place his clients would use to eat, and the ebony wood furniture made for a nice contrast that helped people relax. Well, assuming anyone showed up today.

It was just as he was lost in those thoughts that he heard a familiar pair of voices approaching his establishment. He smiled softly and stood upright, already thinking about what he’d do today.

Seconds later, a couple of young women crossed the threshold of his little paradise. “Hello,” the first of the two to enter was Stella, with her cat ears and the massive drills on her hair, smiling fondly as she sat in front of the bar.

“Hi Timmy,” behind her, the blue-haired Sei smiled widely as she entered, sitting besides Stella and opening her mouth to make an order. 

“Two specials?” Tim guessed before any of them could say anything.

“Of course!” Sei exclaimed. Her eye was now mostly healed, and the small scar that still showed would disappear in a few weeks, she said.

Virgilio nodded and disappeared into the kitchen for a short while. He could hear some of the conversation going on outside between the two girls, both of which had an overly happy tone to them despite the day, though he couldn’t make out much thanks to the sizzling of his pans. He heard them mention the delightful smell of what he cooked. When he came out with his special curry—special because they were fine-cooked to each of their tastes, though they didn’t know that—he set them in the bar and took off his sunglasses.

“So, how has your day been, missies?” 

“Unbelievably boring,” Stella said before shoving some of that curry and rice into her mouth. She took a moment to really taste it before swallowing, and in the meantime, Tim ducked under the bar to grab a couple of beers. They hadn’t asked for them, but he always gave them a couple. They were his best drinks, in terms of quality.

“She’s exaggerating. When that businessman got caught in the rain she laughed,” Sei smiled as she ate from her own plate, humming in appreciation. 

Stella rolled her eyes, but didn’t reply instantly as she was focused on her curry. A standard level of spice, Tim had made it with a mixture of high-end ingredients that he usually reserved just for her and her high-class palate. Sei’s, on the other hand, had less spice than the normal mixture and was sweeter than the norm. It was hard not to feel happy when seeing how much these two—who were patrons of the place—enjoyed his meals. “Sounds like an interesting tale. Would you mind telling it?”

“It’s nothing important,” Stella said between bites. “I was at a business meeting and this man had been  _ incredibly _ pushy about setting a deadline that was, quite honestly, impossible. Clients really don’t understand that their lack of forward thinking is not our fault, but that’s another matter. In any case, he stormed out of the meeting room—”

“I was by the door and almost fell in surprise,” Sei added.

“—and into the street. This was early morning. It was cloudy but not quite raining yet. I went out, and was about to go into the street to try and bring him back when the sky decided it had held it in long enough.”

Tim chuckled. “Yes, I was making preparations when I suddenly heard as if the sky had fallen down.”

“You should have seen her face,” Sei said. She had already eaten half of her plate. “At first she was mortified, but when the guy turned around to look at her with this funny hateful expression, she had to turn around to hide her laughter.”

Stella had the decency to blush at this, her cat ears going down. She set her spoon aside for a second to clear her throat and straighten herself. “It was funny, but I shouldn’t have laughed. He noticed it and we completely lost the deal.”

“Don’t sweat it,” Sei patted her shoulder. “Your father said he didn’t even like the guy.”

“Business isn’t about who you like,” Stella sighed, picking up her spoon and eating again. “But what’s done is done. Other than that, the rest of the day was mostly spent doing business around the city, as usual.”

Timothy smiled and was about to add something when another client entered. He left Stella and Sei to eat and chat among themselves as the new guy sat at one of the tables. Offering him a menu and asking if he wanted a drink, Tim spent a short while speaking with him before going back into the kitchen to prepare his spiciest curry. He smiled, maybe a little devilishly, as he thought of the reaction he was bound to get. Many people asked for the spiciest curry to prove themselves, or because they didn’t think it’d be  _ that _ spicy. They were wrong. 

Maybe it was time to consider having something like a wall of memories, taking photos of those who ate this curry and showing their mistakes to the world.

After serving, he went back to his usual place behind the bar, in front of Sei and Stella, who had finished with their meals and were enjoying their beers. “… I can’t believe that,” Stella said.

“What is so unbelievable, Miss Hoshii?” Tim asked as he settled.

“Sei said she wants to grow her hair.”

“It’s not that crazy. I mean, I’m not really into any kind of military occupation, other than being your bodyguard,” Sei explained, slightly annoyed.

“Sei, you always complained about how long hair bothered you whenever you tried it,” Stella sipped nonchalantly from her beer. “I’ll give it… Six months before you cut it again.”

Sei pressed her lips, not replying, as she seemed to think about something. There was a moment of silence that Timothy used to look at the lonely guy by the table as he took his spoon holding the spiciest curry in the city and slowly brought it to his mouth. It was a strangely tense moment, but it was broken by the food entering the guy’s mouth.

Tim waited. One second. Two seconds.

“Ah, there it is,” he said, smirking.

The girls turned around to watch the man at the table, whose face had started getting red and sweaty. Yet, he didn’t cringe or put on a pained expression. Instead, he ate more. Tim blinked in surprise, watching as this weirdo shoved the curry in his mouth with determination, getting redder, sweating profusely and crying as he did so.

Stella turned around, pressing her lips. Sei soon followed, and both of them began shaking and trying to contain their laughter. Tim, instead, wasn’t quite capable of laughter, as the situation wowed him to no end. His mouth was half open, his brow furrowed, as he watched this one person clearly enjoy the suffering the spice brought to him. His lips were swollen, his eyes beginning to get red, his entire body slowly turning pink.

Without being prompted, Tim decided he’d had enough. He reached for the milk he’d prepared for these occasions and was about to pour a glass of it when he decided to instead bring the entire carton to the guy’s table. When he set it down without saying a word, the plate was nearly empty.

As soon as the guy swallowed the last bit of curry, he dived for the milk, bringing the carton up to his mouth and drinking the entirety of it in a single go. The red on his face lightened a few shades and his expression relaxed. When he was done, he sighed in satisfaction and smiled with his still incredibly swollen lips.

“That was great, old man!” He said. Tim almost felt offended—he didn’t look that old—but this guy couldn’t be older than twenty, so he gave it a pass. “Finally some good spice in this godforsaken city.”

“What is your name, spice-loving man?” Tim’s curiosity was too strong not to ask.

“Spencer,” he replied, offering a hand. Tim took and shook it. “What do I owe you, then?”

Timothy said the price, to which Spencer reacted with some surprise. It was a normal reaction, given that of course Tim was charging him for the carton of milk. Still, he stood, paid and smiled. “Well, that was a good meal. I’ll come back for some more of that spice, old man. Have a good day.”

“Same to you,” Tim said as Spencer turned and waved as he left. 

About five seconds later, Sei and Stella burst with their contained laughter. Tim walked back to his position and let them go at it for as long as they could. “Why do people do that?” asked Sei after stopping. “Some spice I like, but he looked like he was dying!” She laughed again. “I almost went out to get him some milk.”

“I suppose some people simply enjoy having their mouths burned,” Stella said, shaking her head. “Well, that has certainly brightened up my day.”

“I hope you enjoyed your meal,” Tim said. “I try to pour everything I have into whenever I make food for you two,” he smiled.

“It was great, as always,” Sei gave him a broad smile in return. “Thank you.”

“Delicious indeed,” Stella agreed, nodding. “In any case, are you going to let us pay you for the beers today?” She asked, raising both eyebrows inquisitively. 

Tim chuckled. “I have no idea what you’re talking about,” he feigned ignorance as he prepared the tab for the two of them. Of course, he ignored the beers. “Here.”

Sei was about to offer her card when Stella stopped her. “No. I insist,” she said. “You can’t run a business giving away free stuff.”

“You’d be surprised, Miss Hoshii,” he moved faster than most would expect from him and took the card from Sei’s hand. “And you should be thankful I am accepting payment for the food, after all, this place is almost yours.”

Stella’s brow furrowed and her face got slightly red. “We owe you-”

“Sht,” Tim brought up a finger and put it on Stella’s lips. “We are not having this discussion again. The past should stay as it is. The present is now.”

“Come on, Stella,” Sei nudged her slightly. “If we start arguing we won’t be able to reach the party, you know?”

Tim leaned forward, now interested. “Party, you say?” He asked. “Now, I wouldn’t want to intrude, but…”

“Oh, it’s no big deal. Jill’s boss is throwing a party since the bar is closing next week,” Sei explained as she got up, stretching her arms. “What was her name again? Diana?”

“Dana,” Stella stood too, fixing her dress and looking at the time in her watch before nodding. “If we leave now we’ll be there about five minutes late, which isn’t too bad.”

“So, a party at Valhalla… because it’s gonna close. I’d say it sounds like a bad reason to party, but I do think it’s better to accept change with a smile,” Tim nodded approvingly.

“Wanna come?” Sei asked. “Not to be mean, but today seems to be a slow day for business. And this might be your last chance to get a drink there. Jill did say that we could bring any friends we wanted.”

He considered this. Not for long, though, as the second they reminded him of the reason for the party he’d already made his decision. Nodding, he put on his glasses and clapped his hands to the rhythm of his favorite song, which automatically turned off every light and other electronic devices at the place. Fetching his vest and his glasses, he exited behind the pair and closed the door behind him with both electronic and manual locks. 

“I wonder if Jill’s gonna be surprised to see you there,” Sei said as they walked up to Stella’s matte black car. Timothy wondered if she ever used limos. They weren’t very practical but he couldn’t help but imagine she belonged in one.

“Probably not,” Tim let the two of them climb in before himself. Sei was driving, apparently. “We’ve become much more… amicable since I dropped my persona in front of her.”

“If what Sei has told me is truth, then you did act rather annoyingly. Though I can’t say I was very different the first time I went to the bar,” Stella spoke with a little shame. “Anyways, it’s time to get going.”

“Yes. Let us go and bear witness to-” he began to put on his poetry voice.

“Timmy,” Sei interrupted.

“Sorry, force of habit,” Tim chuckled as the car started on its way to what would possibly be his last time at the bar the three of them had come to treasure so much.

**Author's Note:**

> Heyo! This was my piece for the "On The Rocks" Va-11 Hall-A Fanzine! It was really fun and the final product was gorgeous and beautiful and it was a great experience.  
> Thanks **@va11halla_zine** for the opportunity to partake in it!  
> As you can tell, this piece was inspired by the Virgilio ending. While annoying at first, he ended up really growing on me for obvious reasons. Va11halla is one of my favourite games ever, and I hope with this piece I was capable of conveying at least a fraction of what it means to me.
> 
> If you enjoyed this, and would like to see _some more of it_ , consider _checking out_ my twitter or contacting me through Discord!  
> -Twitter: @BillErak (95% of this account is retweets of shitposting or gay stuff, check pinned tweet)  
> -Discord Tag: VathýSkotádi#1696  
> I'd really appreciate the _support!_


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